A 22-year-old mother in Florida has been arrested for allegedly leaving her 3-year-old child unattended at a local playground for over an hour while she went to work at a nearby store, nearly causing him to run into oncoming traffic. Danielle Bryant was arrested earlier this month and charged with one count of child neglect without great bodily harm, court records show.
According to a news release from the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, a deputy was patrolling the Silver Sands Premium Outlets around 1:11 p.m. On Sunday, June 15, 2025, they were approached by a “concerned citizen.” The individual reported that since at least 11:30 a.m., a young child appearing to be about 2 years old had been playing alone in the playground, which was approximately 150 miles west of Tallahassee.
“According to witnesses, the toddler had nearly run into traffic before a bystander intervened and pulled him to safety,” the release reads. “After trying unsuccessfully to locate the child’s parent, the good Samaritan brought the boy to Silver Sands security.”
Deputies went to the outlet mall and spoke with the security guards, who informed them that the little boy was “safe and being cared for.”
The good Samaritan who saved the child from running into traffic was still on the scene, saying he had seen the child alone at the playground since around 11:30 a.m. Until the traffic incident occurred about 45 minutes later.
Deputies were able to contact Bryant, the boy’s mother, by phone around 1:40 p.m. and asked her to come to the Silver Sands Security office, according to a probable cause affidavit. When she arrived a few minutes later, deputies noted in the affidavit that she “did not console the child or show any emotions/reactions” when reunited with her son.
“Bryant told deputies she had been working at a nearby store and had left her son at the playground, stating a friend was supposed to pick him up. She claimed she had been watching him through the store’s window while working,” a news release states. “However, Bryant was unaware that her son had been with a bystander for approximately 45 minutes or that he had attempted to run into traffic, prompting the witness to alert security. At no point did she contact law enforcement to report her child missing.”
The affidavit stated that Bryant worked at a “fragrance store just south of the playground.”
According to investigators, the weather at the time was 88 degrees, but the heat index was 101 degrees, and the child had no food or water with him at the playground during his time alone.
Bryant is scheduled to appear in court on July 22.
“This could have ended much worse,” Sheriff Michael Adkinson said in a statement issued after the arrest. “Thanks to the good Samaritans who stepped in and the quick action by our deputies, this little boy is safe. But this kind of situation is not only dangerous, it is unacceptable.”
